Not too long ago, Snapchat users saw the first ad every displayed on the app. It kinda came out of nowhere, and at first I wasn’t sure if it was an ad or not- I didn’t touch the screen just in case.

After a few seconds I realized it was an ad but it was rather odd; it didn’t look like any ad I’d ever seen before. It looked like it was filmed by some kid, and it seemed almost interactive.

It also looked fun; I’d watch it again if I saw it, which is unlike almost every other ad. Before long I think this will be the norm for ads- short, fun, and seamless.

When the ad was over, another snap appeared on the screen, and the change of message, the change of subject, was completely natural. It was only in the final seconds did I realize it was an ad, and I was fine with watching it once my mind put the pieces together.

That made me think- what will ads look like in the future? If advertisers want people to watch them and not skip them, they better take a look at how advertising is being done on Snapchat.

Snapchat ads have been carefully placed in Live Stories and on content in Discover as well, and for the most part they weren’t annoying. One ad, a short spot by Tide, didn’t look anything like an ad- in fact, it wasn’t even really an ad; it was actually a collection of Snaps that actual users had taken of their dads doing stuff and Tide had arranged it beautifully.

Ads on Snapchat take the user almost by surprise- they’re all oriented vertically, so the user doesn’t need to stop the video, turn of the rotation lock on their phone, and then play the ad, only to do all of that in reverse once it’s over. They’re also short, usually around ten seconds, just like the snaps the hundred million-plus users take every day.

In the future, ads will need to fit right in with daily life and activities. They can’t be photos or videos that distract too much or require undivided attention; they’ll need to appear, run quickly, and disappear without disrupting the consumer.

Basically, ads will need to be crafted with attention to detail and appear unlike any ad we’ve seen before. People are sick and tired of ads- if companies want to advertise in the future, they’re going to need to learn how to do it without making the consumer want to skip the ad or look away.

Ads in the future will need to be crafted for each consumer, they’ll have to be short, and they need to get the consumer to think about buying that product or service, rather than telling them to buy whatever is being sold.

Snapchat’s ads appear and disappear before we even know what we saw. The thing is, we want to see it again.

Snapchat is revolutionizing advertising, and right before our eyes.

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